Brown wins in Ixtapa, Donald gets second
Phillips is fourth in the Elite Men's race.
At the Ixtapa PATCO Junior Triathlon Pan American Championships, Carp, Ontario’s Joanna Brown led the way for the Canadian’s winning the Junior women’s race and her first international title.
After the 2 km run (the race was turned into a duathlon due to high surf), Brown and Ridenour controlled the pack during the 20-kilometre bike before Brown threw down a race best 16:17 5 km run time, allowing her to stop the clock at 57:24, giving her a 27 second victory over Mexico’s Adriana Barazza (57:51), and Christine Ridenour of Cowichan Bay, B.C. (57:58). Brown’s win makes this the fourth-straight time a Canadian has won the Junior PATCO Championship.
“This was a good race, but it was a little different for sure today without the swim,” said Brown. “This feels great to get my first major win but it is a little bittersweet because I want to prove myself in all three disciplines. Christine and I worked really well together and it was great to have the Canadians at the top.”
Other Canadians cracking the top ten were Quebec’s Amelie Kretz in sixth (59:31), Victoria’s Alison Hooper in seventh (59:42), and Saskatoon’s Gabrielle Edwards in eighth (59:49).
Ottawa’s Ian Donald almost pulled off another win in the Junior men’s event. However, he finished second to Mexico’s David Mendoza (52:09), just 11 seconds back. Mexico’s Juan Jose Lopez grabbed the last podium spot (52:31), only 3 seconds ahead of Saskatoon’s Joel Howlett (52:34) in fourth. Kingston’s Alexander Hinton was seventh (52:52) and Terra Cotta’s Taylor Reid finished eighth (53:09).
In the Elite races (ITU Triathlon Pan American Cup), Victoria’s Jeff Phillips, a member of Canada’s national development team, placed fourth in among the Elite Men (1:43:55), his best elite result to date. Phillips, the 2009 Canada Summer Games Triathlon Champion, was second after the opening 3 km run, rode 40 km with the main pack, caught a breakaway group at the 2 km mark of the run, and finished just shy of a podium spot. The USA’s Sean Jefferson outran (32:10) everyone to capture first place (1:42:26). Fellow American Seth Wealing was second (1:42:44), and Mexico’s Crisanto Grajales was third (1:43:36). St. Catherines’ Andre Paul Baillargeon Smith finished eighth (1:45.00).
“It was a good day, but I did really want to swim to see where I was at because I have made a lot of progress in the pool,” said Phillips. “I learned a lot from my races last year to be much smarter. I think I did that today and I have to be very happy with this result.”
Victoria’s Kyla Coates was the fastest Canadian in the Elite Women’s race, finishing in eleventh (2:05:51). A pair of Brazilians, Carla Moreno (1:59.01), and Vanessa Gianinni (1:59:43) finished first and second respectively. Mexico’s Dunia Gomez (1:59:55) was third.
Top 5 Junior Women
1. Joanna Brown (Carp, Ontario) 57:24
2. Adriana Barazza (MEX) 57:51
3. Christine Ridenour (Cowichan Bay, B.C.) 57:58
4. Kelly Whitley (USA) 59:00
5. Andrea Diaz (MEX) 59:26
6. Amelie Kretz (Quebec) 59:31
7. Alison Hooper (Victoria, B.C) 59:42
8. Gabrielle Edwards (Saskatoon, Saskatchewan) 59:49
11. Abby Miller (Saskatoon, Saskatchewan) 1:00:16
14. Rachel Edwards (Saskatoon, Saskatchewan) 1:01:09
15. Maghalie Rochette (Quebec) 1:00:18
17. Dominika Jamnicky (Port Hope, Ontario) 1:02:02
27. Rebecca Staynor (North Vancouver, B.C.) 1:06:14
Top 5 Junior Men
1. David Mendoza (MEX) 52:09
2. Ian Donald (Ottawa, Ontario) 52:20
3. Juan Jose Lopez (MEX) 52:31
4. Joel Howlett (Saskatoon, Saskatchewan) 52:34
5. Octavio Oliveros (MEX) 52:35.
7. Alexander Hinton (Kingston, Ontario) 52:52
8. Taylor Reid (Terra Cotta, Ontario) 53:09
17. Cole Stewart (Victoria, B.C.) 54:44
Top 5 Elite Men
1. Sean Jefferson (USA) 1:42:26
2. Seth Wealing (USA) 1:42:44
3. Crisanto Grajales (MEX) 1:43:36
4. Jeff Phillips (Victoria, B.C.) 1:43:55
5. Eligio Gervantes (MEX) 1:44:41
8. Andre Paul Baillargeon Smith (St. Catherine’s, Ontario) 1:45:00
20. Austin Horn (Victoria, B.C.) 1:47:15
35. Andew McCartney (Victoria) 1:59:32
Top 5 Elite Women
1. Carla Moreno (BRA) 1:59:01
2. Vanessa Gianinni (BRA) 1:59:43
3. Dunia Gomez (MEX) 1:59:55
4. Alejandra Diaz Fuentes Favia (CHI) 2:00:25
5. Flavia Fernandes (BRA) 2:02:17
11. Kyla Coates (Victoria) 2:05:51